Bravo for BerkShares

Have you heard about BerkShares? I first learned about it Sunday night on this ABC News segment. This  alternative currency named after the region for which it was originated in Western Massachusetts (Berkshire County) has caught on like wildfire. And, I can see why.

Started in 2006, BerkShares are now being substituted for official US currency in over 370 businesses in Berkshire County. Basically, any citizen of this county can go to one of 12 banks there and pay $90 for $100 worth of BerkShares. (That's a 10 percent discount for those of you who aren't very good at math.) If you go to its web site, you can see that pretty much every type of service and product business from bakeries, and clothing stores, to restaurants, hotels, fitness centers and landscapers accept and transact business with BerkShares currency. Even residential and commercial landlords are accepting BerkShares as payment for rent. And, that is the critical point because the more consumers and businesses conduct commerce with any currency, the more value it will provide to the community by keeping money in the local economy. In fact, there is now over $2.3 million worth of BerkShares circulated within this small New England community.

There's nothing new about specific regions or communities creating alternative currencies. In fact, BerkShares are actually a throw-back to the Great Depression when a number of cities tried to print and circulate their own currency because our national one was worth almost nothing. The difference this time around is that nothing has ever been so widely adopted and enthusiastically accepted as BerkShares. And, that's pretty cool.

Everyone continues to look for bright spots in this dark economy. I think the Berkshire region has found a gem. The ability for its citizens to receive discounts on almost everything they buy with this currency is certainly the core economic benefit. But, what is really exciting to see is that this story is more about how a community is truly unifying in the toughest times to find ways to prosper. Many people in the Berkshires seem just plain giddy about what their tiny community has developed. And, a little happiness goes a long, long way these days.

Comments

[Mark Herpel]

Community Currencies are becoming very popular. Each month we are reporting on 5-6 new ones popping up across America. This month I believe there are at least 6 more. Keeping your business and purchases local is now more important than ever.

Mark Herpel
[email protected]
Skype IM "digitalcurrency"

[KingofthePaupers]

Jct: Berkshares are a nice community currency but when they peg their dollars to the Time Standard ($10/Hr?), Hours earned locally can be intertraded with other timebanks globally!
In 1999, I paid for 39/40 nights in Europe with an IOU for a night back in Canada worth 5 Hours.
U.N. Millennium Declaration UNILETS Resolution C6 to governments is for a time-based currency to restructure the global financial architecture.
See my banking systems engineering analysis at http://youtube.com/kingofthepaupers